How to build a traditional, wood-fired, clay pizza oven.

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I want to reveal a few exciting things that are just over the horizon.

Firstly, I will be featured in an article in July’s addition of Delicious. Magazine – one of the UK’s top foodie mags. The article is a step by step guide on, you’ve guessed it, building outdoor garden ovens. Watch out for it in your local shops or download a copy: http://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/

My second bit of exciting news is that I am about to publish a new book. It’ll be called The Garden Oven Cookbook and will contain lots of amazing recipes and tips for anyone who wants to cook incredible food in an outdoor oven. I’m hoping to get the book self-published, like my building guide, in July. Watch this space for more information.

Finally, I have been thinking for a while about selling outdoor oven related paraphernalia on my website; things like pizza peels, oven thermometers etc. I’m still thinking about it but would like to know your thoughts. If I do, I’ll definitely sell them for much cheaper than you can get them elsewhere. Let me know if you’d be interested by clicking on the poll below.

The following is an excerpt from my upcoming book, Cooking in a Clay Oven. I hope you enjoy it.

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The finished product - a delicious roast chicken.

ROAST CHICKEN WITH GARLIC, LEMON AND BAY LEAVES

Who doesn’t love roast chicken when it is succulent, moist and has a brown, crispy skin? As with other meat, a chicken roasts exceptionally well in a clay oven. It’s not rocket science, and I don’t mean to teach your granny to suck eggs, but follow this simple, no-nonsense recipe and you’ll have a delicious chicken feast every time. You can substitute the bay leaves for thyme, rosemary or any woody herb which takes your fancy. The one key ingredient for success is a good chicken- it has to be free-range and organic if you can. Don’t compromise on this. If you are going to all this trouble, make it worth your while!

If your chicken has been refrigerated, take it out at least an hour (preferably two) before you are ready to put it in the oven (this is a good tip for any meat actually). Pat the skin dry.

Grate the zest from the lemon and sprinkle it over the outside skin of the chicken.

Cut the lemon in half and stuff it inside the bird’s cavity.

Cut the garlic bulb in half around the equator (unpeeled) and whack half of it in the cavity with the lemon.

Take some stems of bay leaf (with leaves attached of course) and push them into the chicken cavity also. You can substitute any woody herb at this stage if you prefer.

In the bottom of a roasting tray lay some more stems of bay leaf and place the chicken on top.

Separate the rest of the garlic into cloves and scatter them, unpeeled, around the chicken in the tray.

Pour a good slosh of olive oil over the bird and season with salt and pepper.

COOKING

Prepare your oven for roasting following the guidance in Chapter 2 (if you are reading this on the blog, fire for approximately two hrs before spreading the hot embers across the oven floor – you will be roasting in an oven without a fire using the heat radiated from the oven walls and floor for cooking).

Keep an eye on the thermometer. Once the temperature has dropped to around 230°C, clear the ash and embers to one side and then slide the roasting tray into the centre of the oven.

We don’t want to cook the chicken for too long at this temperature, the outside would burn and it would not cook through properly, so leave the chimney and entrance open for a little longer.

Once the temperature has dropped to around 210°C (it won’t take long) block your oven chimney and entrance. This should reduce the rate at which the oven loses heat for the remaining duration of the roast.

Poor yourself a beer and wait.

Check the bird after about 1hr 30 mins (a very small chicken may need less). Cut down between the leg and the body (right into the leg joint) and make sure the meat is not pink and that any juices run clear. If it’s not ready, pop it back in the oven for a while.

Once you are happy that the chicken is cooked to perfection, take it out of the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes or so (this is important because it allows the juices to be sucked back into the flesh of the chicken).